Why Use a Sauna for Longevity?

What Is Longevity?

In a nutshell, longevity means living longer and better.

At ERA, longevity is understood through two dimensions:

Lifespan: how long we live.
Healthspan: how well we live.

It’s not about finding the “fountain of youth”, but about maximizing both lifespan and quality of life across physical, cognitive, and emotional dimensions.

What Influences Longevity?

Aging is a complex process involving multiple factors. These include:

Genetics: our DNA, or what we’re born with. On its own, this does not determine our health or how we age.
Epigenetics: our environment and various lifestyle-related factors can influence how our genes are expressed and how we age.
Lifestyle: physical activity, nutrition, sleep, stress, social relationships, and other habits.
The passage of time: biological aging is an inevitable and multifactorial process.

We can’t change our genes, but we can change or adopt habits that help improve our current health and the way we age.

One of these habits is sauna use.

Sauna and Longevity

There are three effects of heat exposure that are particularly relevant to longevity.

Heat Shock Proteins

Heat exposure creates controlled stress that activates adaptive mechanisms. One of these is the production of Heat Shock Proteins (HSPs): proteins that help maintain and protect other proteins, preventing them from misfolding.

Why is this important? Because misfolded proteins may contribute to neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s.

VO2 Max

According to Peter Attia, there is one “star” marker of longevity: VO2 max. It measures the amount of oxygen the body can use during intense exercise, reflecting cardiorespiratory fitness.

“Your VO2 max is more strongly correlated with your lifespan than any other metric I can measure. It predicts your risk of death from any cause, even more than your blood pressure, cholesterol, or smoking status.” Peter Attia.

Sauna use can improve VO2 max by increasing plasma volume and promoting red blood cell production. This allows oxygen to be delivered more efficiently to the muscles, increasing aerobic capacity.

A study found that using a sauna after exercise for three weeks improved exercise performance, including VO2 max, running speed, and time to exhaustion, more than endurance training alone.

Cardiovascular Exercise

One of the most extensively studied effects of sauna use is its impact on heart health.

One of the most frequently cited studies is Sauna bathing is associated with reduced cardiovascular mortality and improves risk prediction in men and women: a prospective cohort study.

What was done? Researchers analyzed more than 1,600 participants, with an average age of 63. Half were men and half were women. They divided them into three groups based on sauna use frequency* and compared their outcomes.

What did they find?

People who used the sauna 2 or 3 times per week were 27% less likely to die from cardiovascular causes than those who used it only once a week.
Those who used it 4 to 7 times per week were 50% less likely to die from cardiovascular causes.

*Sauna temperatures ranged between 80 and 100 °C, and sessions lasted between 5 and 20 minutes.

In a nutshell, the study found a potential link between sauna use, cardiovascular health, and longevity.

Sauna Protocol for Longevity

Here’s a general sauna protocol you can try to start working towards better longevity.

Temperature between 80 and 90 °C
Sessions lasting between 10 and 20 minutes
2 to 4 times per week
Hydrate before and after each session

A few reminders:

The temperature and time spent in the sauna will depend on each individual and their ability to adapt to heat. Listen to your body: set the temperature accordingly and stay in the sauna for as long as your body feels comfortable.
Heat adaptation comes with regular sauna use. The more frequently we use the sauna throughout the week, the more our bodies adapt to heat and the more efficiently we sweat.

Conclusion

Heat exposure activates physiological mechanisms related to the cardiovascular system, heat shock proteins, and VO2 max. All of these may play an important role in improving health and promoting healthy aging.

That said, heat exposure is a complementary tool, not a replacement for other fundamental pillars of health and longevity, such as physical activity, nutrition, sleep, and more.

Longevity isn’t built with a single tool or overnight. The earlier you start, the better the results, but any moment is a good moment to take action.